Mini: Ski Weekend in the Poconos
Left to Right: Sean, Ashley, Ray, Alyssa, Molls
Not Pictured: My little brother - recovering from a gnarly snowboard fall 😣
Bundle up & whisk away with me to the Northeast for ski season in the Poconos! First time for this gal, my brother Zach, Ashley, Sean, but an annual hometown visit for Ray and Alyssa. We were charmed by the many fun facts of Tannersville that Ray was dishing out (his burnt down elementary school, the weird liquor laws, the now non-existent pizza joint that housed his birthday party where he received his first Gameboy). The things that really shape a person, ya know? Our ski-in/ski-out Airbnb on Camelback Mountain was cozy & comf.
Meeting a mountain with sheer will and a contraption(s) strapped to your feet can sometimes lend way to a hospital visit. Sadly, my little brother Zach came to know this all too well. A tumble on ice and landing on his shoulder cut his snowboarding days real short. We drove to the closest hospital and very luckily, x-rays showed no broken bones or dislocation, but that poor arm has set up house in a sling for the next few weeks. We made the best of a bummer situation with good food & drinks for our evenings out which included Frank’s, Barley Creek Brewing Company (I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the brownie sundaes), Sarah Street, Downriver Brewing, Triplets Family Diner, and Bagel Heaven.
It’s been about a year since I hit the slopes with real fresh powder in Aspen. Ready to pop back in that muscle memory, I snapped in my skis, moved forward, and… ice. Pure ice. And fear. And, dare I say, insecurity. Woof. Progress that I had made the year before seemed to be slipping away in the background. I was grappling to believe the reality that I was simply not used to skiing in icy conditions while my lack of confidence was starting to eclipse. Have you ever traveled somewhere, attempt an activity, and when it’s not going the way you thought, let negative thoughts absolutely rampage? Honestly, I rarely run into this school of thought but this time around, I was mentally ping ponging… while skiing (I’m exhausted just recalling it). I quietly let those emotions sit and take up the room they wanted, but was ultimately determined to not let it set up camp in my mind. I may have been the last one down the mountain several times or gone on runs by myself, but I’m proud of myself for trying.
Through the mental yo-yoing, I gave myself little breaks to enjoy the sunshine and do a pretty decent job on some blues! And being able to stop and say out loud to myself “Ok, you did it. Now keep going!”
“The secret of making progress is to get started.”
-Mark Twain
